Interactive events platform

ABSTRACT

The system is directed towards an interactive events platform. The interactive events platform may discover current in-game events associated with different video games currently available (or active). The platform may further notify a user of the discovered in-game events associated with different video games and facilitate the user joining a particular in-game event. The interactive events platform may also discover and notify the user of future in-game events associated with different video games. In some embodiments, the discovery and notification of any in-game events are based on games currently being played (or registered) with the user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation and claims the prioritybenefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/900,631 filed Feb. 20,2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,695,673, which is a continuation and claimsthe priority benefit of Ser. No. 15/140,406 filed Apr. 27, 2016, nowU.S. Pat. No. 9,895,611, which claims the priority benefit of U.S.provisional application No. 62/153,444 filed Apr. 27, 2015, thedisclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND Field of Invention

The present invention generally relates to in-game events. Morespecifically, the present invention relates to an interactive eventsplatform and system for hosting in-game events and notifying users ofthe availability and means to engage with the same.

Description of the Related Art

The amount of time a user may spend playing a video game generallyfollows an expected pattern. The amount of time the user initiallydevotes to playing the game is typically greater than the time the userdevotes to game play several weeks or months later. There may be manyreasons that contribute to this decline in the amount of time dedicateto game play. For example, a user may complete the tasks or challengedoffered by the game and the user sees no additional reason to engage ingame play. The user may also become less interested or bored with thegame because game play has become repetitive or due to inability toovercome certain challenges. The story line of a particular game mayalso be unsatisfactory to the particular tastes of the user. Further,there exist a number of games already on the market and new games areconstantly being introduced that may divert the interests of the user.

In view of the challenge to retain user interest with respect to aparticular game as long as possible, some game publishers or gameplatform providers may implement in-game events. In-game events aretime-limited activities that introduce special or different game playelements. There are a variety of different types of in-game events thatcan be implemented.

For example, some time-limited events may introduce a story-relatedevent or game-related challenge that further expands on the existinggame and in which the users can participate. Other events may introducesome sort of bonus or benefit for joining the time-limited such as beingable to acquire additional experience, resources (e.g., in-gamecurrency), or loot (e.g., items or equipment/gear). These in-game eventsaim to maintain the interest of users for a prolonged period of time. Insome instances, such events may be helpful in drawing older users backto the game after these older users have stopped playing for a prolongedperiod of time.

In-game events are also a way for companies to keep users engaged with aparticular game thereby building long-time loyalty for the game,franchise, published, or game platform. User loyalty can be convertedinto free advertisement by way of word-of-mouth or other viral activityand increased sales by way of new users being introduced to a game byway of a friend.

As users remain invested in the game, a publisher, service provider, orplatform can take advantage of opportunities to increase retention withthe game. As described above, newer users may be drawn to the game fromexisting users because of the in-game event, which can result inteam-based or clan-based game play. This may also have the benefit ofreducing the number of ‘used’ game sales that might deprive a publisherof controlling after-market sales or otherwise dilute of a brand. Suchretention may also allow publishers to provide events that includeopportunities for current users playing the game to buy add-on oradditional content (i.e. expansions) or obtain access to subsequenttitles at an early date.

From a user perspective, in-game events are enjoyable because theyintroduce new experiences and challenges. In-game events also motivatefriends to join and experience the event as well. Events like these alsomake a user feel that their purchasing dollar has been well spent andhelps create an affinity to a brand, publisher, or platform, which inturn allows for the generation of future content, experiences, andevents that may further keep the user happy with the purchase therebycreating a self-perpetuating cycle of content and game play loyalty.

In-game events may be problematic, however, in that unless the user isactively engaged with the game, these in-game event opportunities may bemissed with respect to when the in-game events actually occur. Forexample, users may opt to receive messages (e.g., e-mail or texts)regarding special in-game events associated with a game. Other gamesprovide notification of in-game events to the users within the operationof the game (e.g., as a part of a title screen, waiting room, or mainmenu). The former option may generate notifications that can potentiallybe viewed as unwanted text or e-mail traffic from users that maysubsequently be dismissed as spam or lost amongst a series of othercommunications. With the latter instance, if the user is not activelyfollowing a particular game, then the user may not encounter the titlescreen or menu screen providing information as to when in-game eventsmay occur (e.g., currently or in the future).

Also problematic is the fact that even if the user remembers that anin-game event is occurring, there may be confusion as to how the usercan participate. For example, the in-game event may require that theuser perform a certain task, participate in a particular mode ofgameplay, or be in a certain location within the game at a certain time,and so forth. Certain credentials or a special password may also berequired. It should be noted that users may also be engaged in numerousin-game events over multiple games that are currently being played bythe user.

There is a need in the art for a system that not only discovers andnotifies the user of in-game events, but also provides an easy way forthe user to engage with the same.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENTLY CLAIMED INVENTION

A systems for an interactive events platform is presently claimed. Thesystem includes a plurality of computing devices that are used to hosttheir respective in-game events, one or more client computing devices,and a network computing device. The network computing device includes avariety of features that support the interactive events platformpresently claimed. The network computing device communicates with thegame computing device in order to receive information about in-gameevents. The received in-game event information may include informationabout the event that is displayed for the user to view but also includeinformation that can facilitate streamlining user access to the in-gameevent. The received information is provided to the users, via theirrespective user computing devices. Users, via their respective usercomputing devices, can participate in one or more in-game events. Basedon the user input associated with the displayed in-game eventinformation, the network computing device generates correspondinginstructions that is used to streamline the user's gameplay experiencewith the in-game event. User information is provided, from the usercomputing device to the game computing device via the network computingdevice. Furthermore, the network computing device initiates the userclient device for the in-game event automatically.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 A and FIG. 1B illustrate an events destination interfaces.

FIG. 2 illustrates a detailed events interface.

FIG. 3 illustrates an interface for event discovery.

FIG. 4 illustrates a registration screen for an in-game event.

FIG. 5 illustrates a live broadcast interface.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary system for implementing an interactiveevents platform.

FIG. 7 illustrates various tournament interfaces.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an exemplary electronic entertainmentsystem.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present invention concern implementing an interactiveevents platform. The interactive events platform may discover currentin-game events associated with different video games currently available(or active). The platform may further notify a user of the discoveredin-game events associated with different video games and facilitate theuser joining a particular in-game event. The interactive events platformmay also discover and notify the user of future in-game eventsassociated with different video games. In some embodiments, thediscovery and notification of any in-game events are based on gamescurrently being played (or registered) with the user. The environmentfacilitates user awareness and participation with respect to in-gameevents. Through better implementation of in-game event awareness,increased user participation may be recognized and companies orplatforms can more easily maintain a prolonged interest in the game formany users over a longer period of time.

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B illustrate event destination interfaces 100. Withreference to FIG. 1A, the events destination interface 100 may beinitially displayed with the interactive events platform or be viewablevia menu elements (e.g., ‘events’). The events destination interface 100of FIG. 1 includes a list of all in-game events currently active 110. Insome embodiments, this list may correlate instead to the respective gametitles currently owned, rented, or otherwise in active play by the user.The user can customize or filter the list 110 to identify those gamescurrently owned, rented, or otherwise in active play via a filter option120. The user can also include games on the list 110 in which the useris interested in following but does not currently own, rent, orotherwise actively play. This list 110 may also include future in-gameevents associated with the aforementioned game titles associated withthe user.

The features of the events destination interface can be implemented overdifferent devices (e.g., other gaming consoles, mobile devices,desktops) that are also capable of running games. In other embodiments,the events destination interface is also implementable via computingdevices that are not associated with gaming or have gaming capabilities(e.g., a smart watch).

With the events destination interface 100, general information about theevents may also be included that further facilitates advertising for aparticular game. For example, with the list of all in-game events thatare currently active, the events destination interface 100 may include aranking of popular events based on how many different users arecurrently participating in the particular event 130. Acquaintanceswithin the game (e.g., teammates, guild mates, rivals) or real-lifefriends of the user who are currently participating in an in-game eventmay also be listed 140. In other embodiments, the list of other usersmay also include a more popularly received in-game event may be acatalyst that encourages newer users to buy the game in order toexperience the popular in-game event.

In an alternate embodiment, the events destination interface 100 mayappear as illustrated in FIG. 1B. In this alternate embodiment, theevents destination interface 100 includes a calendar 150 that includesinformation about the various in-game events. For example, a calendarfor the current month may include indication of what in-game events arecurrently active or will be active within that month. Users may beallowed to view future months to see any in-game events planned later inthe year as well. A list of user in-game events may be provided 160 onthe events destination interface 100. This list of user-in game events160 may include a list of in-game events that the user is participatingin, registered for or at least interested in participating.

The user may also be allowed to search for or filter the variety ofin-game events illustrated on the calendar 150. The user can filter, viasearch options 170 associated with the events destination interface 100.By entering in, for example, the name of the game or the title of theevent, the events destination interface 100 may provide a list ofrelated in-game events for the user to view (not shown).

FIG. 2 illustrates a detailed events interface 200. This interface 200can be obtained through user selection of one of the listed in-gameevents displayed on the events destination interface 100 of FIG. 1. Thedetailed events interface 200 may provide a variety of differentinformation associated with the selected in-game event. For example, thedetailed events interface 200 will include specific details 210regarding the in-game event; specific details that include the title ofthe event, pre-requisites (if any) for joining the in-game event,prizes/loot that can be acquired, description of the type of in-gameevent that will be hosted, where the in-game event will be hosted (e.g.,in-game location, particular gameplay mode) as well as when (e.g., dateand time) and how long (e.g., duration) the in-game event will occurfor.

The displayed detailed information about an event may not be static. Insome embodiments, this detailed information can be modified and updatedas required. For example (and as described in further detail below),some events may include tournaments that includes competition betweenusers or teams of users. Tournaments may typically have set matches thatneed to be completed. The detailed information can include informationabout upcoming matches and would be updated based on results fromcompleted matches.

The detailed events interface 200 may also include other features asidefrom details regarding the in-game event. For example, features mayallow a user to ‘share’ 220 the information about the in-game event withother users (e.g., friends). Features may also allow a user to register230 for the event. Registration may include indicating an intention toparticipate with respect to the in-game event but may also include awillingness to receive notifications and reminders about the event via,for example, text or email). When registration for an event is allowed,a list of users who have registered for the event 240 may be displayedfor the user to view. This list may highlight, for example, any usersthat are on the user's friends list.

The act of registering for the in-game event may be requested orrequired for some in-game events if the in-game event has a maximumnumber of allowed participants (e.g., user player cap). For example, aplayer cap may be implemented for an in-game event that is being hostedas a competition or tournament where various users can compete againsteach other individually or in teams to achieve prizing (e.g., in-gameresources, loot) and/or a ranking. The user player cap may beimplemented for a variety of reasons such as ensuring that thetournament can be completed within a reasonable time or to ensure thatservers associated with the game can efficiently carry out the in-gameevent without causing significant problems (e.g., network processing).

As noted above, the detailed events interface 200 may includeinformation regarding how many different users have registered for thein-game event 240. The detailed events interface 200 may also includeinformation regarding how many users (and the identity of the same) arecurrently participating in the in-game event. The list of differentusers currently participating in the in-game event may also include alist of users (e.g., friends, guild/clan members) that the user canview. The list of users that have registered 240 or are currentlyparticipating in the in-game event can provide the user an understandingas to how popular a certain in-game event may be.

The detailed events interface 200 may also provide a start/launch option250. Said option may facilitate entry into the in-game event. Forexample the option 250 may include a user selectable button labeled‘Launch’ or ‘Start.’

Although the detailed event interface 200 provides information aboutwhere the in-game event may be hosted, users may not be immediatelyclear on where to go in order to participate in the in-game event.Therefore, the start/launch option 250 may assist in streamlining userentry into the in-game event. In particular, the start/launch option 250is customized for each in-game event and may also include customfeatures associated with the specific user participation in the in-gameevent.

For example, selection of the start/launch option 250 when the user isplaying alone may only automatically initiate the game and set up thegame play environment (e.g., select the appropriate game mode ortransport the user's character to the appropriate location) so that theuser can begin participating in the in-game event. In contrast, aplurality of users utilizing the start/launch option 250 in an in-gameevent that is a tournament would facilitate match making and setting upcorresponding features (e.g., parties, team-chat, peripherals such asmicrophones) with the other users.

As noted above, the start/launch option 250 facilitates setting up thegame environment for the user. In an embodiment where the user maydecide to participate in an in-game event with one or more friends,selection of the start/launch option 250 may place the user within thegame and establish a new party with the user's one or more friends whomay already be within the game participating with the in-game event.Alternatively, if a party is already formed within the game, the usermay be added automatically (or a request be automatically sent to aparty leader to request the addition of the user to the existing party).It should be noted that the start/launch option 250 may requireadditional input from the user, for example, indicating the friend(s)the user wishes to participate in the in-game event with.

The start/launch option 250 may be implemented by the developer andcarried out by the interactive events platform. In particular, thedeveloper may implement corresponding instructions that would instruct agame being initiated by the user to generate a corresponding gameenvironment associated with the in-game event. When the user selects thestart/launch option 250, the interactive events platform may use theinstructions provided by the developer to have the user's gamestreamline the user's entry into the in-game event.

It should be noted, however, that the start/launch option 250 may notalways be implemented by the developer for their in-game events. Insituations where such an option is not used, user selection of theoption 250 may merely initiate the game. Once the game is initiated, theuser may be required to navigate to the appropriate environment (e.g.,game location, mode) where the in-game event is occurring. The existenceof the start/launch option 250 is provided so that developers can assistthe user in participating with the in-game event.

The information regarding various in-game events may be removed ordeleted from the events destination interface and/or the interactiveevents platform once the particular in-game event has expired. Byremoving or deleting expired events, the list of in-game events can bekept up-to-date with current events and not include the clutter thatarises if expired events still occupy the same list. Information aboutpast events, however, does not need to be completely deleted or removedfrom the events destination interface. Past in-game event informationmay be kept in a separate list that users can reference again at a laterdate.

For example, an in-game event may include a tournament involving apre-determined number of players. Information about the tournament(e.g., audio/video recordings, results, statistics) may be stored inmemory so that users who missed the in-game event can still search andobtain the information (e.g., view match recordings) about that expiredevent. The in-game event information may be stored in a separatelocation (e.g., servers) distinct from where the game is run (e.g., gamecomputing devices), the network facilitating the interactive eventplatform and/or the client device. Furthermore, the list of expiredevents may be kept separate from the list of current in-game events. Inthis way, the interactive events platform can still maintain the currentavailable in-game events without cluttering the list with expiredevents.

FIG. 3 illustrates an interface for event discovery 300. As noted above,users may easily miss or overlook the existence of current in-gameevents associated with various games. Some in-game events may providenotifications during interactions with the particular game (e.g., mainmenu, waiting room, title screen). Embodiments of the present inventionfacilitate user discovery of in-game events more so than what currentlyexists in the art.

For example, notifications regarding when an in-game event is availablecan be published in a number of locations that provides more visibilityto various users. Aside from interactions with the game, thenotifications 310 can be associated with a main menu or lobby 320 forthe events destination interface 300. The main menu or lobby 320 cancorrespond to an area associated with the computing device (e.g., gameconsole) that includes features that connects the user to various games(e.g., games the user currently owns). Through this embodiment, the userwould not need to enter a particular game to discover what in-gameevents exist.

In other embodiments of the present invention, notifications can also beprovided to the user via social media 330. By voluntarily choosing to‘follow’ a particular game via social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter),the developer for the game may provide notifications via social media330 about current and upcoming in-game events that users can receive andview. These social media posts/notifications can be viewable, forexample, in the main menu or lobby 320.

Discovery for current in-game events can also be provided to the uservia notification of other user participation and/or registration with anin-game event. Other users (e.g., friends) associated with the user canprovide status updates for the user to view. These updates for the usermay be triggered based on, for example, a friend registering or playingin an in-game event for a game that the user currently is playing.

Some in-game events may request or require that the user register forthe in-game event in order to participate. In some cases, users may berequested to pre-register for the event in advance of the start of thein-game event. FIG. 4 illustrates a registration screen for an in-gameevent 400.

The registration screen for an in-game event 400 may be obtained, forexample, via the registration button 230 of the detailed eventsinterface 200 of FIG. 2. The registration screen 400 may include similarinformation provided on the detailed events interface 200. Suchinformation includes any time-based information 410 that could includeone or more of the following: a start date/time, an end date/time, aremaining time left for the event and a countdown to the start of theevent.

The registration screen 400 may include similar if not the same detailedinformation about the in-game event 420. This detailed information maysimilarly include details about the events and the rewards/benefits forjoining the event. A list of registered users 430 for the event may alsobe shown. An emphasis on the user's friends may be provided such thatthey are shown first or are highlighted in the list of registered users430. In some embodiments, the user's friends can be located in aseparate list.

The registration screen 400 would also include a user-selectable feature440 that would carry out the user registration for the in-game event.For example, upon selection of the feature 440, the user's account couldbe listed as being registered for the event, be eligible to participatein the event (if registration is required) once the in-game event beginsand receive notifications, reminders and updates regarding the in-gameevent. This type of registration may be a “default” way of registeringfor an event.

As noted above, it may be possible to provide notifications andreminders to the user for those events where the user has registered.These notifications may include a countdown until the in-game eventstarts, the time and place corresponding to the start of the in-gameevent and countdown to when the in-game event ends.

Notifications can be provided from the interactive events platform tothe user via their computing device/game console. These notificationsmay pop up when the user is using the corresponding gameconsole/computing system. Notifications can also be provided as textmessages or emails. The user would be allowed to specify how thereminders can be received (e.g., text, emails, popups) as well as wherethe reminders should be provided to (e.g., game console, smartphone,desktop/laptop).

Once the user has registered for an event using the registration screen,the system may identify the user as being registered (e.g., via aspecial mark/symbol). This status of being registered for the in-gameevent can be subsequently provided by the system to the game computingdevice (e.g., game client, game server).

The developer may be allowed to provide customized registration to becompleted by users in order to register for an event. In this way, gamesmay have different ways to register for an event. For example, adeveloper or a tournament organizer may request additional informationabout the user. This information can be used to determine eligibility tojoin the in-game event. This determination of eligibility can beperformed on the developer side, by the system or by both. The developeror tournament organizer may provide, for example, guidelines for thesystem to use to help evaluate whether a user is eligible for thein-game event (e.g., tournament). In this way, the registration forin-game events can be streamlined by both the game computing device andthe network computing device.

With reference to the interface for event discovery discussed above withFIG. 3, user registration for an in-game event using the registrationscreen of FIG. 4 may also trigger notification of the registration toother users. For example, the user may provide notifications to alltheir friends that they had just registered for an event. This type ofnotification, in response to registration, can be used to spreadawareness of a particular in-game event.

The notifications that are received by the user via e-mail or as textare capable of including the same sort of information as provided in theabove detailed events interface. The notifications may include detailsregarding the name of the event, description of the in-game event, thestart time, the end time and the location of the in-game event. Thisnotification would be useful as a reminder so that the user does notforget to participate in the in-game event, especially in situationswhere the user pre-registered for the event in advance.

Notifications received while on the gaming console may pop up andindicate to the user that the in-game event is about to begin or hasbegun. The pop-up notification may include a user selectable option thatallows the user to automatically participate in the in-game event ifselected. This option would allow the user to leave whatever the user iscurrently doing (i.e. playing one game) and enter into a different gamecorresponding with the in-game event. Alternatively, the pop upnotification may forward the user to the detailed event interface forthe specific in-game event referenced in the notification. From there,as discussed above, the start/launch option could be selected tostreamline the user's participation in the in-game event.

FIG. 5 illustrates a live broadcast interface 500. In an embodiment ofthe present invention, where an in-game event includes live broadcast(e.g., discussion with developers, on-going tournament), thestart/launch option may bring up a live broadcast interface 500. Thelive broadcast interface 500 may include a list of games 510 thatcurrently have live broadcasts 520 available for the user to view. Thesebroadcasts may include developers talking about the particular game orplayers currently playing the game (i.e. streamers) who elect to sharetheir in-game gameplay experience for other users to view.

In other embodiments, this live broadcast interface 500 may also includepast recordings of broadcasts 520 available for the user to view. Thepast recordings of broadcasts 520 may be stored, for example, in memory(e.g., archives) associated with the live broadcast interface 500. Thesepast recordings can be retrieved by users and viewed on demand. In stillfurther embodiments, these past recordings may also be provided to otherdestination (e.g., Youtube, Twitch) where users can also view the pastrecordings using different platforms and devices.

The broadcasts that are viewable by users through the live broadcastinterface 500 may be organized any number of ways. For example, thebroadcasts 520 may be organized, as described above, by games 510. Thebroadcasts 520 may also be arranged by users or by popularity. Once aparticular game is selected from the list of games 510, the livebroadcast interface 500 will display the various live broadcasts (orstreams) associated with the selected game. The user can select aparticular stream and begin viewing the live broadcast.

When the user is navigated to the live broadcast interface 500, the userautomatically leaves or, alternatively, pauses whatever activity inwhich the user was previously engaged (e.g., playing a different game).Upon selection of a live broadcast 520, the live broadcast can bedisplayed for the user to view, for example, via a pop-up. Once the useris finished with viewing the live broadcast 520, some embodiments of thepresent invention may allow the user to resume where the user left offbefore.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary system 600 for implementing aninteractive events platform. The system 600 includes one or more gamecomputing devices (i.e. servers) 610 associated with carrying out theparticular game, one or more client computing devices 620 from whereusers will be participating in the in-games events from, and one or morenetwork computing devices 630 for facilitating the game experience forthe user between the gaming computing devices 610 and client computingdevices 620. As described herein, the computing devices (e.g., game,client, and network) may include any known computing devices. Thesecomputing devices may include any number of processors and memory tocarry out their respective instructions. Exemplary computing devices mayinclude, for example, desktops, laptops, mobile devices (e.g.,smartphones), tablets and game consoles (e.g., PlayStation 4).

With the system 600, as illustrated in FIG. 6, developers associatedwith the game may have various game computing devices 610 for theirrespective games. Generally processes for the game involving only oneplayer (e.g., single player campaigns) can be performed on therespective client computing device 620. When the game involves multipleusers over an online feature, however, the game computing devices 610may be used to facilitate the various connections between the multipleplayers via a common online game environment. The game computing devices610 may also host the online environment(s) where the multiple playerswould participate in the in-game event.

The network computing devices 630 facilitate the discovery, notificationand streamlining of the in-game events between the users (via the clientcomputing devices 620) with the game (via the game computing devices610). Whenever a developer, via the game computing devices 610, providesinformation about an in-game event to the network computing devices 630,the information can be forwarded to the user at the client computingdevices 620. When a user indicates that he/she would like to participatein an in-game event via their client computing device 620, the networkcomputing device 630 forwards the information to the game computingdevice 610. Furthermore, the network computing device 630 may performvarious additional processes to facilitate streamlining the userexperience when beginning the in-game event.

Although further details regarding how in-game event information isprovided to the network computing device 630 from, for example, thedeveloper is provided below, it should be noted that the networkcomputing device 630 includes a development (or service providerintegration 640) feature and a production 650 feature associated withthe in-game events.

The service provider integration feature 640 allows users (e.g.,developers) to test whether aspects of the in-game event are compatiblewith the interactive events platform. For example, the service providerintegration feature 640 can be used to ensure that information about thein-game event appears properly on the detailed events interface.Developers can customize how such information appears and whatinformation is displayed. Furthermore, developers can test interactionswith the computing devices of the system 600 (carried out, for example,through corresponding code) to ensure that a user is capable of enteringan in-game event smoothly (e.g., initiating the game properly). Once thetests have been carried out and the in-game event is ready, developerscan use the production feature 650 to release the in-game event to thepublic. Release of the in-game event to the public may refer toproviding the in-game event information to the interactive eventsplatform (via the network computing device 630) even though the eventitself may not begin until later.

To facilitate the development of in-game events and how they interactwith the interactive events platform, the present invention provides aplurality of application programming interfaces (APIs) associated withthe network computing device 630 that developers can use to develop howthe in-game event operates with the interactive events platform andprovide the information to be used by the interactive events platform.

In-game event data may include event metadata that provides the detailsfor the in-game event that will be displayed, for example, on thedetailed event interface. Developers provide the in-game event data, viatheir game computing devices 610 using the APIs associated with thenetwork computing devices 630. The APIs facilitate developers inpopulating the different types of information for the in-game event tothe interactive events platform. Such information include how theinformation is displayed, the start/end dates, duration, what detailsare provided about the event and rewards, registration processes andstreamlining (e.g., autoboot) of the in-game event using thestart/launch option described above.

This information associated with the in-game events can be updated andmodified as needed. In some embodiments, users may need authorization topopulate and/or modify aspects of in-game events. For example, if adeveloper would like to populate information and/or modify informationfor in-game event, an authorized user account would need to be used.This may be incorporate to ensure that events are properly hosted byrecognized game developers. In contrast, if a single user would like tocreate and/or modify an in-game event for a few friends oracquaintances, an authorized user account may not be needed.Alternatively, there may be different types of user accounts thatdictate what type of events can be created.

As noted above, in-game events may be generated by a single user. Thesein-game events may be associated for a smaller group of users (e.g.,acquaintances, friends) associated with a particular task or challengeto complete within the game. The group of users may be public (i.e. openinvitation) or private (i.e. limited to the identified users in thein-game event). A user can schedule a time where various other userswould all play the game at the same time with the user.

In order to carry out the creation of this in-game event for the userand the user's friends, the user would create the in-game event andprovide information regarding the in-game event to the network computingdevice. This user-created in-game event can then be developed andpublished to the user's friends in a similar manner as the developercreated in-game events. It should be noted that the user may or may nothave access to the same APIs that developers can use to create andpublish their in-game events. In some embodiments, users may havedifferent APIs than the ones usable by developers. In some cases, fromthe view of the user's friends, the interactive events platform mayprovide distinguishing marks (e.g., symbol, text color) that can be usedto distinguish between a user created in-game events from a developercreated in-game events.

As noted above, the network computing device 630 can facilitatestreamlining the user participation (via their respective clientcomputing devices 620) with the in-game events (via the game computingdevices 610). As noted above, the interactive events platform (e.g.,detailed events interface) allows the user to initiate the in-game eventvia a start/launch option. The network computing device 630 providesthis functionality to games through the use of APIs that allows thedeveloper to provide instructions directed at automatically setting upthe user's game experience. For example, the user's game, onceinitiated, can be instructed to establish a game environment related tothe in-game event.

If the in-game event involves the user playing with other users (e.g.,friends) whom the user would like to play with, the generatedinstructions may identify these other users and update the gamecomputing device so that the user and these other users can join thesame in-game event. In some embodiments, these generated instructionsfor the game to generate a gaming environment where these users arewithin the same party at the in-game event. In other embodiments,peripherals (e.g., microphones, cameras) or other in-game features(e.g., group chat) may also be initiated so that the user has access tothese automatically once the user is able to participate in the in-gameevent.

As an embodiment of the present invention, the interactive eventsplatform is usable with respect to E-sports and tournaments. Generally,e-sports are organized multiplayer video game competitions betweenplayers involving one or more games of various genres such as FPS (firstperson shooters), MOBAs (multiplayer online battle arena), strategy andfighting games. These competitions may incorporate live broadcasts aswell as include prizes. Example games active in the E-sports sceneinclude games from the Call of Duty and Street Fighter franchises. Thepresent invention would be incorporated into the E-sports and tournamentscene by streamlining organization and management of the event.

As an example, the interactive events platform may be used to generatean in-game event specific to the tournament. Although some tournaments(e.g., smaller scale) may be generated by users or companies associatedwith a particular game, other tournaments (e.g., larger scale) may berestricted to specific companies/partners (e.g., Intel Extreme Masters,Evolution Championship Series) that focus on hosting tournaments.

The network computing system 630 may also include other elements otherthan what is illustrated in FIG. 6. For example, the network computingsystem 630 may include features for managing administrative user-relatedinformation on behalf of the game computing device 610. For example,this user management feature can be directed towards processing andstoring in-game event information that is displayed for the user toview, sending notifications for each user, and managing user informationand social connections.

The network computing system 630 may also include features that helpsmanage the in-game events alongside the game computing device 610. Forexample, these game management features may contain game server systemsused to coordinate the in-game events alongside the game computingdevice 610. In this way, the network computing system 630 can facilitatesome game processes that would have been performed by the game computingdevice 610 such as score keeping and rewards. The game managementfeatures of the network computing system 630 can also include‘back-office’ systems thereby facilitating a developer to administratean in-game event using the network computing system 630.

FIG. 7 illustrate various tournament interfaces. In a first tournamentinterface 700, information about the tournament may be displayed.Tournaments may specify particular players and/or teams that would beeligible to join. Furthermore, details regarding the matches (e.g.,brackets) as well as a time frame in which the match should be completedwould be included as well. Specific players and/or teams may registerfor the in-game event through the tournament interface.

In a second interface 710, information regarding a match within thetournament can be provided. For example, information may include thegame the tournament is for, who is participating in the tournament(e.g., team) as well as what time the match will occur. It should benoted that start/launch options can be included with the tournamentinterface 710 that would streamline the match making/pairing of theplayers or teams within the tournament if a bracket is involved. Whenthe start/launch option is selected, the user and the user's teammatesmay automatically be initiated into the game and placed within the samegame instance as the opponents based on the bracket. Otherwise, thepairing may be done based on other criteria (e.g., ranking) or randomly.In any case, the start/launch option could be used to ensure that thecorrect users are initiated into the correct instance of the game thatincludes the user's teammates and corresponding opponents. Correspondingfeatures, such as team chat, could also be automatically enabled so thatindividual user setup is not needed prior to the start of the match.

A third tournament interface 720, can be provided to allow users to viewpast or ongoing matches. This tournament interface 720 may include apast recording or live stream of the match 725. Additional information728 may also include the participants within the match as well as anygame-related information of interest (e.g., statistics, status of eachplayer). In some embodiments, comments from other users can be providedabout the match. These comments can be displayed on this tournamentinterface 720 for viewing by other users.

Once a match is complete, processes may be included with the interactiveevents platform whereby results are obtained. Results are then used toupdate the in-game event information shown on the interactive eventplatform viewable by any number of users. In order to provide resultsfor the interactive events platform, users may be required to submit ascreen shot that illustrates who is the winner/loser of the match. Insome embodiments, this result may be acquired automatically by theinteractive events platform by evaluating game-based data (e.g., score,life left, status).

The interactive events platform, as described above, when used withE-Sports/tournaments would better automate the organization andmanagement of the tournament. This reduces the need for administratorsto manually pair players and/or teams within the game. Rather, thepairing and game set up is provided automatically via the interfaceusing, for example, the tournament bracket that was initially providedwith the in-game event set up.

Once updated, the tournament results can be viewed, for example, throughthe use of a fourth tournament interface 730. The information about theresults may include various statistics or details about the match, whowas involved in the match as well as a past recording of the match. Insome embodiments, this information may also be included in the detailedevents interface for users to view as well.

Although the above description and figures describe embodiments of theinteractive events platform usable in the realm of games, it should benoted that this platform is also usable outside games as well. Forexample, a similar embodiment could be used with business that wouldfacilitate conference calls or meetings held via teleconference orvideo. Events (e.g., meetings) could be scheduled with an identifiednumber of participants. These events could be provided notification ofthe event via a variety of different ways (e.g., email, text, pop-up ona computing device). The notification may include information regardingthe event and provide a start/launch option that streamlines the user'saccess to the event (e.g., automatic setting up of the conferencecall/video conference) on the user's computing device.

It should be noted that the interactive events platform may beimplemented in an application that may be operable using a variety ofend user devices (i.e. computing devices). For example, an end userdevice may be a personal computer, a home entertainment system (e.g.,Sony PlayStation4), a portable gaming device (e.g., Sony PSP), or a homeentertainment system of a different manufacturer. The presentmethodologies described herein are fully intended to be operable on avariety of devices. The present invention may also be implemented withcross-title neutrality wherein an embodiment of the present system maybe utilized across a variety of titles from various publishers.

These end user devices may include non-transitory computer-readablestorage media. Such media refers to any medium or media that participatein providing instructions to a central processing unit (CPU) forexecution. Such media can take many forms, including, but not limitedto, non-volatile and volatile media such as optical or magnetic disksand dynamic memory, respectively. Common forms of non-transitorycomputer-readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexibledisk, a hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROMdisk, digital video disk (DVD), any other optical medium, RAM, PROM,EPROM, a FLASHEPROM, and any other memory chip or cartridge.

Various forms of transmission media may be involved in carrying one ormore sequences of one or more instructions to a CPU for execution. A buscarries the data to system RAM, from which a CPU retrieves and executesthe instructions. The instructions received by system RAM can optionallybe stored on a fixed disk either before or after execution by a CPU.Various forms of storage may likewise be implemented as well as thenecessary network interfaces and network topologies to implement thesame.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an exemplary electronic entertainmentsystem 800. The entertainment system 800 of FIG. 8 includes a mainmemory 805, a central processing unit (CPU) 810, vector unit 815, agraphics processing unit 820, an input/output (I/O) processor 825, anI/O processor memory 830, a controller interface 835, a memory card 840,a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface 845, and an IEEE 1394 interface850. The entertainment system 800 further includes an operating systemread-only memory (OS ROM) 855, a sound processing unit 860, an opticaldisc control unit 870, and a hard disc drive 865, which are connectedvia a bus 875 to the I/O processor 825.

Entertainment system 800 may be an electronic game console.Alternatively, the entertainment system 800 may be implemented as ageneral-purpose computer, a set-top box, a hand-held game device, atablet computing device, or a mobile computing device or phone.Entertainment systems may contain more or less operating componentsdepending on a particular form factor, purpose, or design.

The CPU 810, the vector unit 815, the graphics processing unit 820, andthe I/O processor 825 of FIG. 8 communicate via a system bus 885.Further, the CPU 810 of FIG. 8 communicates with the main memory 805 viaa dedicated bus 880, while the vector unit 815 and the graphicsprocessing unit 820 may communicate through a dedicated bus 890. The CPU810 of FIG. 8 executes programs stored in the OS ROM 855 and the mainmemory 805. The main memory 805 of FIG. 8 may contain pre-storedprograms and programs transferred through the I/O Processor 825 from aCD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or other optical disc (not shown) using the opticaldisc control unit 870. I/O Processor 825 of FIG. 8 may also allow forthe introduction of content transferred over a wireless or othercommunications network (e.g., 4$, LTE, 3G, and so forth). The I/Oprocessor 825 of FIG. 8 primarily controls data exchanges between thevarious devices of the entertainment system 800 including the CPU 810,the vector unit 815, the graphics processing unit 820, and thecontroller interface 835.

The graphics processing unit 820 of FIG. 8 executes graphicsinstructions received from the CPU 810 and the vector unit 815 toproduce images for display on a display device (not shown). For example,the vector unit 815 of FIG. 8 may transform objects fromthree-dimensional coordinates to two-dimensional coordinates, and sendthe two-dimensional coordinates to the graphics processing unit 820.Furthermore, the sound processing unit 860 executes instructions toproduce sound signals that are outputted to an audio device such asspeakers (not shown). Other devices may be connected to theentertainment system 800 via the USB interface 845, and the IEEE 1394interface 850 such as wireless transceivers, which may also be embeddedin the system 800 or as a part of some other component such as aprocessor.

A user of the entertainment system 800 of FIG. 8 provides instructionsvia the controller interface 835 to the CPU 810. For example, the usermay instruct the CPU 810 to store certain game information on the memorycard 840 or other non-transitory computer-readable storage media orinstruct a character in a game to perform some specified action.

The foregoing detailed description of the technology herein has beenpresented for purposes of illustration and description. It is notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the technology to the precise formdisclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light ofthe above teaching. The described embodiments were chosen in order tobest explain the principles of the technology and its practicalapplication to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilizethe technology in various embodiments and with various modifications asare suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that thescope of the technology be defined by the claim.

What is claimed:
 1. A system for providing an interactive events platform, the system comprising: memory that stores information regarding an online event, the stored information including one or more event features of the online event; a communication interface that communicates over a communication network, wherein the communication interface: sends a notification to one or more client computing devices regarding the online event, and receives a request from at least one of the client computing devices regarding access to the online event, and a processor that executes instructions stored in memory, wherein execution of the instructions by the processor: generates event instructions for the at least one requesting client computing device, wherein execution of the event instructions by the requesting client computing device configures the requesting client computing device for streamlined access to online event launches an online environment of the online event, the online environment corresponding to the event features; and automatically provides the requesting client computing device streamlined access to the online environment based on the event instructions without requiring further action from the requesting client computing device.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor further: identifies one or more events available to each of the client computing devices; and generate a customized list of the available events for a user of the at least one requesting client computing device, wherein the notification sent to the at least one client computing device is based on the corresponding customized list.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor generates the customized list based on one or more indicators of interest from the user.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the indicators of interest include at least one of registration by the user, participation by one or more designated friends or team members, and one or more designated titles of interest.
 5. The system of claim 2, wherein each event in the customized list is associated with a link for streamlined access, and wherein the processor launches the online environment based on user selection of the associated link for the online event.
 6. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor further generates a calendar display based on the customized list, wherein the calendar display indicates an activity status of each event on the customized list.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor automatically provides the requesting client computing device with streamlined access to the online environment by placing a point of view associated with a user of the at least one client computing device at a specified location within the online environment.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor automatically provides the requesting client computing device with streamlined access to the online environment further based on one or more designated friends or team members with whom a user of the client computing device wishes to interact in the online environment.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the generated customized event instructions are further executable by the at least one requesting client computing device to set up a peripheral device for use during the online event.
 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the online event is a videoconference call, and wherein the generated customized event instructions are further executable by the at least one requesting client computing device to set up a group chat associated with the videoconference call.
 11. A method for providing an interactive events platform, the method comprising: storing information in memory regarding an online event, the stored information including one or more event features of the online event; sending a notification over a communication network to one or more client computing devices regarding the online event; receiving a request from at least one of the client computing devices regarding access to the online event; and executing instructions stored in memory, wherein execution of the instructions by a processor: generates event instructions for the at least one requesting client computing device, wherein execution of the event instructions by the requesting client computing device configures the requesting client computing device for streamlined access to online event, launches an online environment of the online event, the online environment corresponding to the event features, and automatically provides the requesting client computing device streamlined access to the online environment based on the event instructions without requiring further action from the requesting client computing device.
 12. The method of claim 11, further: comprising: identifying one or more events available to each of the client computing devices; and generating a customized list of the available events for a user of the at least one requesting client computing device, wherein the notification sent to the at least one client computing device is based on the corresponding customized list.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein generating the customized list is based on one or more indicators of interest from the user.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the indicators of interest include at least one of registration by the user, participation by one or more designated friends or team members, and one or more designated titles of interest.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein each event in the customized list is associated with a link for streamlined access, and wherein launching the online environment is based on user selection of the associated link for the online event.
 16. The method of claim 12, further comprising generating a calendar display based on the customized list, wherein the calendar display indicates an activity status of each event on the customized list.
 17. The method of claim 11, wherein automatically providing the requesting client computing device with streamlined access to the online environment includes placing a point of view associated with a user of the at least one client computing device at a specified location within the online environment.
 18. The method of claim 11, wherein automatically providing the requesting client computing device with streamlined access to the online environment is further based on one or more designated friends or team members with whom a user of the client computing device wishes to interact in the online environment.
 19. The method of claim 11, wherein the generated customized event instructions are further executable by the at least one requesting client computing device to set up a peripheral device for use during the online event.
 20. The method of claim 11, wherein the online event is a videoconference call, and wherein the generated customized event instructions are further executable by the at least one requesting client computing device to set up a group chat associated with the videoconference call.
 21. A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium, having embodied thereon a program executable by a processor to perform a method for providing an interactive events platform, the method comprising: storing information in memory regarding an online event, the stored information including one or more event features of the online event; sending a notification over a communication network to one or more client computing devices regarding the online event; receiving a request from at least one of the client computing devices regarding access to the online event; generating event instructions for the at least one requesting client computing device, wherein execution of the event instructions by the requesting client computing device configures the requesting client computing device for streamlined access to online event; launching an online environment of the online event, the online environment corresponding to the event features; and automatically providing the requesting client computing device streamlined access to the online environment based on the event instructions without requiring further action from the requesting client computing device. 